The Texas Education Agency released a provisional set of accountability ratings for school districts and campuses across the state Friday based on the TEA’s upcoming A-F rating system. The grades released by TEA are considered a trial run compiled from 2015-16 data.

Each district and school will be rated in five areas or domains: Domain I-Student Achievement; Domain II-Student Progress; Domain III-Closing Performance Gaps; Domain IV-Postsecondary Readiness; and Domain V-Community and Student Engagement. Today’s scores only include domains I-IV, with no overall score, but a designation as to whether the district and school met standards.

Overall, Eanes ISD received the top grade of "A" in student achievement, an "A" in student progress, an "A" in closing performance gaps and a "B" in postsecondary readiness.

"As a district, we are proud of the preliminary A-F accountability ratings released Friday by the TEA," Eanes ISD Superintendent Tom Leonard said in a statement. "Eanes ISD earned an A in every category with the exception of a B in Domain IV, which encompasses absenteeism at the elementary/middle school levels and post-secondary readiness at the high school level. As with any assessment, our primary focus is on how Eanes ISD rates with its comparison group; the proposed system is too preliminary to have the data in which to compare. Regardless of the assessment system, Eanes ISD is committed to educational excellence for our students that prepares, inspires, and engages each student in rigorous academic experiences and enriching opportunities."

Lake Travis ISD received an "A" in student achievement, an "A" in student progress, a "B" in closing performance gaps and a "C" in postsecondary readiness.

"It is important to note that these preliminary ratings are based on incomplete data from the 2015-2016 school year and are solely intended to provide a preview of potential ratings which are not yet final," LTISD Superintendent Brad Lancaster said. "Lake Travis ISD and each of our campuses have already ‘met standard’ under the state’s current accountability system. Regardless of the assessment system, I am confident our teachers and support staff will continue to work towards educational excellence for each of our students."

All schools in Eanes ISD and Lake Travis ISD also received grades in three or four of the domains. Results can be found on the map below:



According to the TEA, the new rating system measures year-over-year district and student performance beyond the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness results. This system will officially be implemented in the 2017-18 academic year, reflecting district and student performance in the 2016-17 academic year.

"We continue to examine the data to understand the complexities of this new rating system but also anticipate TEA may make several changes in how it calculates scores by the time the first official ratings are issued next school year," Leonard said. "Our hope is that they will partner with districts on ways to improve the current proposed system to more accurately depict the complexities in measuring student performance and progress."

The A-F ratings are a change from the “met standard,” “met alternative standard,” and “improvement required” accountability ratings given to school districts and campuses in previous years.

Based on August 2016 accountability ratings, all schools in both Eanes and Lake Travis ISDs received the rating of "met standard."

The system change comes as a result of House Bill 2804 passed by the 84th Texas Legislature in 2015.